Isolation of microorganism from the fermented coconut milk and comparison of quality parameters of virgin coconut oil recovered by induced fermentation.

Investigations were carried out at College of Agriculture, Vellayani, Kerala Agricultural University,Kerala, India to produce virgin coconut oil through induced fermentation method during the period 2013-2015.Coconut milk was extracted from grated coconut with coconut water in the ratio 1:1 and was kept for 24 and 36 hours for fermentation and the microorganisms were isolated and screened.Lactobacillus isolated at 24 hours showed significantly superior protease and amylase activity compared to other microorganisms. Lactobacillus was multiplied and one percent of the culture was used to induce fermentation of coconut milk. The virgin coconut oil recovered from induced fermentation was then compared with the natural fermentation method and wasfound to be significantly superior compared to natural fermentation method.Coconut milk extracted from grated coconut with water in the ratio 1:1, incubated with one percent Lactobacillus and kept for 36 hours showed significantly superior oil recovery compared to other treatments. Quality parameters like free fatty acid content, total phenolic content and moisture content did not differ significantly between treatments and was within the limits of APCC Standards. Thus induced fermentation can be taken as a method for the hygienic production of water clear virgin coconut oil.